This invention relates generally to espresso coffee making and more particularly to a system and method for providing and serving, fully automatically, such coffee beverages as espresso, cafe latte, cappacino, and the like, from roasted whole beans.
The practice of brewing espresso and making and serving steamed milk inclusive beverages such as cappacino or latte is a relatively highly developed field; and the prior art includes devices for grinding the special beams and brewing, largely automatically, a basic espresso liquor. Significant skill is generally required, however, on the part of the operator to measure the beans, pack the precise charge of ground coffee into the brewer cylinder with a precise magnitude of compressive force, and apply water to the cylinder in the precise quantity, temperature, and pressure for a precise time period to create a desired measure of the liquor at a satisfactory serving temperature with a consistent quality of the resultant beverage. If the finished drink is to be milk inclusive, the operator then draws milk from a refrigerated source, operates a steam wand from a high temperature, pressure source to aerate and heat the milk before blending it with the coffee liquor.
Properly handling the cold milk and the dangerous steam, obviously requres a further set of skills; and a fully skilled operator with state of the art equipment can be expected to require approximately one minute to prepare and serve the drink.
It may be noted that the problem of acquiring and practicing these skills is aggravated by an observed perfection expectation characteristic on the part of expresso clientele. Restaurants and stores that make and serve espresso typically expect to provide substantial time in training and require the mastery of an extensive instruction manual, to train an espresso machine operator.
This time and labor factor often causes a restaurant to "close down" a potentially highly profitable espresso operation during rush periods because unless extra operators are hired for the period and unless there is an adequate number of brewing machines available, service congestion and customer frustration create ill will among and between service and customer personnel.
Inherent in the difficulties indicated above and the level of the skills required to master them satisfactorily is the milk safety problem. Because of the dangerous bacteria culture bed that milk provides when not refrigerated, even a microscopic quantity of warm milk must not be left in the machine. Accordingly, milk is typically poured manually from a refrigerated supply into an open glass or metal beaker where it may be treated by the steam wand. The open vessel and the wand must then be frequently thoroughly cleaned to prevent the deleterious growth of bacteria.
The problems and difficulties, and costs incumbent therewith, have severely retarded the popularity growth of espresso and its associated beverages because of profit risk and the dangers of the milk handling.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a fully automated espresso method and system that is not subject to these difficulties and limitations of the prior art.
It is another object to provide such a system and method which reliably provide consistent quality of espresso beverages.
It is another object to provide such a method and system in which temperature, quantity, pressure, and timing of water, steam, coffee beans, and milk at every significant point in the system is essentially continuously monitored and computer controlled.
It is another object to provide such a system and method in which a supply of milk is stored and refrigerated within the apparatus.
It is another object to provide such a method and system in which milk is automatically drawn from the refrigerated supply as needed for each serving and in which no residue of non-refrigerated milk is left in the apparatus after each serving.
It is another object to provide such a method and system which reliably consistently and rapidly repeatedly delivers a milk inclusive hot espresso beverage from whole roasted beans every 15 to 25 seconds.
It is another object to provide such a method and system which is fail safe in its handling of steam, hot water, electrical power, and milk.
It is another object to provide such a method and system in which the operator's only function during normal operation is to make a drink selection by pressing an appropriate button on the control panel of the apparatus.
It is another object to provide such a system which is rugged and reliable and readily and economically maintained.